MapLight Launches Voter Guide for California Ballot Propositions in English and Spanish

March 19, 2012

MAPLIGHT LAUNCHES VOTER GUIDE FOR CALIFORNIA BALLOT PROPOSITIONS IN SPANISH AND ENGLISH

The nonprofit, nonpartisan Voter Guide was made possible in part by a grant from the James Irvine Foundation.

BERKELEY, CA-MapLight, a research organization that reveals money's influence on politics, announces the launch of a new Voter Guide, available in both English and Spanish, profiling California's ballot propositions. Today's launch of the Voter Guide will provide journalists and voters with a snapshot view of each proposition's summary information-what a 'YES' or a 'NO' vote would mean, the projected financial impact of the proposition, campaign arguments by proponents and opponents, and more-as well as campaign finance data-money raised for and against and a top 10 list of contributors for and against. In coming weeks the Voter Guide will be expanded to include endorsements, news, editorials, and advertisements.

"As a voter, it's hard to find the information you need to make truly informed decisions at the ballot box," said Daniel Newman, MapLight's president & co-founder. "The new MapLight Voter Guide provides California voters with a simple, reliable source for information about propositions all in one place, making it easier than ever to know what you're really voting for."

Available today, the Voter Guide provides journalists and citizens with summary information and campaign finance data relating to each ballot proposition for the June 5 primary election including:

Summary information

What a 'YES' or a 'NO' vote would mean

The financial impact a ballot proposition would have

Arguments written by the campaigns for and against each ballot proposition

Contact information of the campaigns for and against each ballot proposition

Additional informationfor example, how it got on the ballot

Campaign Finance Information

How much money has been raised for and against each ballot proposition and their total contributions

The top 10 list of contributors for and against each ballot proposition and their total contributions

In coming weeks, the Voter Guide will provide a more comprehensive view showcasing each ballot proposition's:

Endorsements

Names of organizations and individuals who have publicly indicated support of or opposition to each ballot proposition

News

All of the latest news articles related to a ballot proposition

Editorials

Editorials and opinion pieces written for and against each ballot proposition

Advertisements

Advertisements paid for by the campaigns supporting and opposing each ballot proposition

MapLight, a political money tracker, allows users to gain unique insights into how campaign contributions affect policy so they can draw their own conclusions about how money influences our political system.

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